Air France Ends A350 Route

Air France will end its Airbus A350 service to Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) earlier than expected.

The shift, part of a cut to the northern winter 2026/27 programme from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG), means the Airbus A350-900 route will end on 30 January 2027.

Under previous schedules, the French flag-carrier intended to continue offering flights to Manila through the first week of May; this is a significant cut.

The revision changes the operating period but doesn’t affect the overall frequency or the aircraft used between the two markets. Instead, the airline is choosing to continue operating the Airbus A350-900 on three flights a week,

AF208 remains scheduled to depart Paris at 2320 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, arriving the following day in the Philippines at 1940, all times local. AF209 departs as the return leg at 2145, arriving in Paris the following morning at 0600.

Air France has optimised the arrival time in Paris to support onward connectivity, either domestically through France or across Europe on short-haul services, and a 0600 arrival gives passengers the best chance to access the full day’s timetable.

The schedule filing, flagged by aeroroutes, means the final flight departs Manila on 31 January 2027 but ultimately arrives back in Paris on 1 February, given the late departure from the Philippines.

Air France’s recent return to Manila

As part of its continued commitment to restoring its global network, Air France introduced flights to Manila on 7 December 2024 as part of a focus on Asia.

The launch includes three flights a week on the Airbus A350-900, with 34 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats, and 266 economy class seats at the back of the cabin. Manila also became the fifth new route during the 2024/25 programme, revealed as part of scaling.

Air France wasn’t a stranger to the Philippines and Manila when it returned, because the service re-established a link that had been missing for two decades and the inaugural outbound flight re-established a vital connection between the two cities.

Ending service several months ahead of schedule isn’t uncommon for airlines, and for Air France these moves are typical in response to demand trends, aircraft availability and, in the last 12 months, the pressing concern of surging operating costs off the back of conflict in Iran.

For passengers, bringing the service end date forward ultimately removes thousands of seats that would’ve otherwise been available and forces work to create new interiors on likely different dates too.